Cooling system

ABSTRACT

A cooling system includes an area heat extraction hardware, a cooling device including an evaporator, a compressor and a condenser, a grounded-coupled heat exchanger connecting to the condenser and a cooling medium circularly flowing in the area heat extraction hardware, the cooling device and the grounded-coupled heat exchanger. The area heat extraction hardware extracts heat from the air and heats the cooling medium. The heated cooling medium passes through the evaporator and the evaporator extracts the heat of the heated cooling medium. The compressor transfers the heat extracted by the evaporator to the condenser. The condenser transfers the heat from the compressor to the grounded-coupled heat exchanger. The grounded-coupled heat exchanger transfers the heat of the cooling medium to the ground so the cooling medium is cooled.

BACKGROUND

1. Technical Field

This disclosure relates to cooling systems, particularly to a coolingsystem including a ground-coupled heat exchanger.

2. Description of Related Art

An air conditioner is an appliance, system, or machine designed tostabilize the air temperature and humidity within a closed area.However, the typical air conditioner has high energy requirements, suchas blower and compressor energy consumption.

Therefore, there is a room for improved in the art.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Many aspects of the embodiments can be better understood with referenceto the following drawings. The components in the drawings are notnecessarily drawn to scale, the emphasis instead being placed uponclearly illustrating the principles of the exemplary cooling system.Moreover, in the drawings like reference numerals designatecorresponding parts throughout the several views. Wherever possible, thesame reference numbers are used throughout the drawings to refer to thesame or like elements of an embodiment.

The Figure is a diagram view of an exemplary embodiment of a coolingsystem.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Referring to the, an exemplary embodiment of a cooling system forcooling a closed area 10, such as a container data center (CDC), isshown. The cooling system includes area heat extraction hardware 20located in the container data center, a cooling device 30, aground-coupled heat exchanger 40, a first heat pump 50 and a second heatpump 60. The area heat extraction hardware 20 is for extracting theheated air from the CDC environment to be cooled and sends the heatedair to the rest of the cooling system and may include a blower and aduct. The area heat extraction hardware 20 is connected to the coolingdevice 30, and the cooling device 30 is connected to the ground-coupledheat exchanger 40. The parts of the cooling system are connected by apipe network (not shown) with cooling medium (e.g., water) flowingthrough therein.

The cooling device 30 includes a condenser 31, a compressor 32, athrottling valve 33 and an evaporator 34. The compressor 32 and thethrottling valve 33 are both connected to the evaporator 34. Thecondenser 31 transfers the heat generated by the evaporator 34 and thecompressor 32 to the ground-coupled heat exchanger 40 by the coolingmedium. The compressor 32 takes a cool, low pressure cooling medium thatcomes from the evaporator 34 and squeezes, i.e., pressurizes, the cool,low pressure cooling medium until it becomes a hot, high pressurecooling medium. The compressor 32 sends the hot high pressure coolingmedium to the condenser 31 which transfers the heat of the hot highpressure cooling medium to the ground with the aid of the ground-coupledheat exchanger 40. The throttling valve 33 regulates the flow of thecooling medium to the evaporator 34. The evaporator 34 evaporates thecooling medium into gas, and as the cooling medium turns into gas, heatis extracted from the surrounding air.

The second heat pump 60 connects the evaporator 34 to the area heatextraction hardware 20. The second heat pump 60 diverts heat between theevaporator 34 and the area heat extraction hardware 20.

The ground-coupled heat exchanger 40 includes a plurality of undergroundheat exchanger tubes 41. The exemplary embodiment has two undergroundheat exchanger tubes 41. The underground heat exchanger tubes 41 cancapture or dissipate heat to or from the ground. The ground-coupled heatexchanger 40 further includes a water collector 42 and a watersegregator 43. The underground heat exchanger tubes 41 are parallellyconnected to the water collector 42 and the water segregator 43. Thewater segregator 43 partitions the hot high pressure cooling medium fromthe condenser 31 into the underground heat exchanger tubes 41. The firstheat pump 50 connects the condenser 31 to the water collector 42. Thefirst heat pump 50 diverts heat between the condenser 31 and the watercollector 42.

In use, the area heat extraction hardware 20 extracts the heat in theCDC and the cooling medium in the area heat extraction hardware 20 isheated. The heated cooling medium in the area heat extraction hardware20 then passes into the evaporator 34 where it gasifies. As the heatedcooling medium gasifies, the evaporator 34 extracts heat from the heatedcooling medium, and the compressor 32 transfers the heat extracted bythe evaporator 34 to the condenser 31. The condenser 31 transfers theheat from the compressor 32 to the water segregator 43, and then to theunderground heat exchanger tubes 41. The underground heat exchangertubes 41 transfer the heat of the cooling medium to the ground, therebycooling the cooling medium. The cooled cooling medium flows into thewater collector 42 and is pumped by the first heat pump 50 to thecondenser 31, and then flows through the throttling valve 33, evaporator34, the second heat pump 60 and area heat extraction hardware 20 for anext operation of extracting the heat from the CDC.

In the exemplary embodiment, the cooling system includes theground-coupled heat exchanger 40 connected to the condenser 31, so theheat of the cooling medium in the condenser 31 can be transferred to theground, i.e., the cooling medium in the condenser 31 can be cooled byground-coupled heat exchanger 40, which can reduce the energyrequirement of the cooling system.

It is to be further understood that even though numerous characteristicsand advantages of the exemplary embodiments have been set forth in theforegoing description, together with details of structures and functionsof various embodiments, the disclosure is illustrative only, and changesmay be made in detail, especially in matters of shape, size, andarrangement of parts within the principles of the exemplary invention tothe full extent indicated by the broad general meaning of the terms inwhich the appended claims are expressed.

1. A cooling system comprising: an area heat extraction hardware; acooling device comprising an evaporator, a compressor and a condenser,the compressor connecting the evaporator to the condenser; agrounded-coupled heat exchanger connecting to the condenser; and acooling medium circularly flowing in the area heat extraction hardware,the cooling device and the grounded-coupled heat exchanger; wherein thearea heat extraction hardware extracts heat from surrounding air so thecooling medium is heated; the heated cooling medium passes into theevaporator and the evaporator extracts the heat of the heated coolingmedium, and the compressor transfers the heat extracted by theevaporator to the condenser; the condenser transfers the heat from thecompressor to the grounded-coupled heat exchanger; the grounded-coupledheat exchanger transfers the heat of the cooling medium to the ground sothe cooling medium is cooled.
 2. The cooling system of claim 1, whereinthe area heat extraction hardware is connected to the cooling device. 3.The cooling system of claim 1, wherein the cooling device is connectedto the ground-coupled heat exchanger.
 4. The cooling system of claim 1,wherein the cooing device further comprises a throttling valve, whichconnects the evaporator to the compressor.
 5. The cooling system ofclaim 4, wherein the throttling valve regulates the flow of the coolingmedium to the evaporator.
 6. The cooling system of claim 1, wherein thecondenser transfers the heat generated by the evaporator and thecompressor to the ground-coupled heat exchanger by the cooling medium.7. The cooling system of claim 1, wherein the evaporator evaporates thecooling medium into a gas.
 8. The cooling system of claim 1, wherein theground-coupled heat exchanger includes two underground heat exchangertubes underground, the underground heat exchanger tubes capture ordissipate heat to or from the ground.
 9. The cooling system of claim 8,wherein the ground-coupled heat exchanger further includes a watercollector and a water segregator; the underground heat exchanger tubesare connected to the water collector in parallel; the underground heatexchanger tubes are connected to the water segregator in parallel. 10.The cooling system of claim 9, wherein the water segregator partitionsthe cooling medium from the condenser into the underground heatexchanger tubes.
 11. The cooling system of claim 9, further comprising afirst heat pump connecting the condenser to the water collector; thefirst heat pump diverts heat between the condenser and the watercollector.
 12. The cooling system of claim 11, further comprising asecond pump connecting the evaporator to the area heat extractionhardware; the second heat pump diverts heat between the evaporator andthe area heat extraction hardware.
 13. A cooling system for cooling acontainer data center, the cooling system comprising: an area heatextraction hardware located in the container data center; a coolingdevice comprising an evaporator, a compressor and a condenser, thecompressor connecting the evaporator to the condenser; agrounded-coupled heat exchanger connecting to the condenser; and acooling medium circularly flowing in the area heat extraction hardware,the cooling device and the grounded-coupled heat exchanger; wherein thearea heat extraction hardware extracts heat from the container datacenter so the cooling medium is heated; the heated cooling medium passesinto the evaporator and the evaporator extracts the heat of the heatedcooling medium, and the compressor transfers the heat extracted by theevaporator to the condenser; the condenser transfers the heat from thecompressor to the grounded-coupled heat exchanger; the grounded-coupledheat exchanger transfers the heat of the cooling medium to the ground sothe cooling medium is cooled.
 14. The cooling system of claim 13,wherein the area heat extraction hardware is connected to the coolingdevice.
 15. The cooling system of claim 13, wherein the cooling deviceis connected to the ground-coupled heat exchanger.
 16. The coolingsystem of claim 13, wherein the cooing device further comprises athrottling valve, which connects the evaporator to the compressor. 17.The cooling system of claim 16, wherein the throttling valve regulatesthe flow of the cooling medium to the evaporator.
 18. The cooling systemof claim 13, wherein the condenser transfers the heat generated by theevaporator and the compressor to the ground-coupled heat exchanger bythe cooling medium.
 19. The cooling system of claim 13, wherein theevaporator evaporates the cooling medium into a gas.
 20. The coolingsystem of claim 13, wherein the ground-coupled heat exchanger includestwo underground heat exchanger tubes underground, the underground heatexchanger tubes capture or dissipate heat to or from the ground.